Shidler College of Business finance students excel in CFA competition

Competing against some of the nation’s top business schools, a team made up of four undergraduate finance students from the Shidler [pronounced: SHYd-ler] College of Business at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa impressed judges with an exceptional and confident presentation at the regional CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst) Institute Global Investment Research Challenge in San Francisco in March.

The Shidler team—whose members are team captain Jonathan Fung, Josh Gillman, Kristin Dery and Tolly Powell—was not only the top undergraduate team in the competition, but also competed successfully against MBA teams from well-known business schools.

1st place - Wharton School of Business, University of Pennsylvania, San Francisco Campus (Executive MBA Team)

2nd place - Shidler College of Business, University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa (Undergraduate Finance Team)

3rd place – Haas School of Business, UC Berkeley (Graduate MBA Team)

UH Faculty Advisor Ben Bystrom said he was very proud of the team members’ efforts. “Their equity analysis and presentation was on par with top investment banks on Wall Street,” said Bystrom. “The margin separating the Wharton Executive MBA team and Shidler team for the top position was razor thin.”

Said team captain Fung, “The Global Investment Research Challenge allowed me to apply my theoretical background in finance. It was definitely intimidating, but also very rewarding.”

Added team mate Gillman, “The competition was a great experience in allowing us to present in front of real portfolio managers and investors. It also gave us an opportunity to see what questions and concerns actual professionals would have.”

Said Mike Hirai, president of CFA Hawaii and president and CIO of Bishop Street Capital Management, “This experience will be extremely relevant as the team members pursue their respective careers after graduation. They all have very bright futures ahead.”